Equal opportunities to participate in future

Many times, I had some rare and exclusive occasion to interact with the children from lower income families group. Children living in makeshift encampments or in 60-80 yards houses located in some of the poorest neighborhoods of Karachi that have least basic facilities are my subject. A systematic investigation into the lifestyle of more than fifty school children aged around 6-12 years, who were attending 1st to 5th grade classes at schools gave me a rare insight about Pakistan's economically split society and flaws of education system. Several visits to the schools made the children comfortable as they started sharing their hobbies and interests.
They also talked about choices of their studies. During the course of my visits and interaction, I developed a kind of jovial relationship with them that encouraged children to open up with their likes, dislikes, tastes and fondness for things that their young minds had found interesting. This was a bit challenging for the children as they had to answer my questions that ranged from academic to non-academic and their family related issues.
Moreover, this was not a competitive exam that could have made them worried or panicked. So their spirit and courage to speak up was remarkable. These were not well prepared and polished students of posh and well-known schools of Karachi. But I found them well informed at par with students of elite schools while some were better than them.
They knew much more than their subjects. All of them have a profile which is filled with extra-curricular activities like sports, music, arts and debating. Some of them even had the experience of volunteering services. I was amazed by their versatile qualities. No doubt they would be successful in accomplishing their aim of life. Their abilities will help them materializing their dreams someday I believe.
Most of the children in the fold of my study belong to poor or lower middle-class families, some of them being very poor. As opposed to the common perception that children of poor families are not interested in studies or they cannot do well in studies, these children amused me with their talents and creativity. The fact came into view that it was all due to the efforts of their mothers and how nicely they have raised their children and what values are instilled in them.
Mothers in particular, play a crucial role in shaping up the minds of children. Mothers in lower income group families are illiterate, undernourished, overworked and discriminated with high fertility rate and poor access to quality healthcare while many of them die untimely. These mothers, irrespective of themselves being illiterate, were eager to get the best for their children and their sacrifices are remarkable. But do these children have equal opportunities to participate in future?
My investigation scooped out a clear division of opportunities available for a segment of the society as the quality education has become an opportunity only for the affluent class. During the interviews I came across few bright students of Basic Education Centers run by local aid organizations. They came from economically deprived backgrounds yet they were full of talent and potential like the students of posh urban schools in terms of intelligence, creativity and enthusiasm. They were brilliant, motivated and innovative.
They were also brimming with budding talents and waiting for opportunities that may come someday in their way. This indicates that if given the opportunity, children from poor families can perform equally well. Ironically, apart from only a handful of urban based schools, the standard of education in other schools is low.
Their academic performance is noticeably poor while they have rarely a space given to exercise extracurricular activities. Subsequently, most of them do not make it to colleges or universities. This divide in accessing to quality education is creating a division in the job market, income pattern and in the standard of living as well. The situation is leading towards an intergenerational division within the society as the poor lag behind while the rich move forward.
This however, is not a healthy sign for the economy which aspires to advance at a fast pace to reach the height of prosperity. Among many strengths of Pakistan, population, particularly the youth is a prominent one. Despite tremendous pressure of interstate economic migration to the cities and rapid urbanization, Pakistan is in a unique position of harvesting from its 'demographic dividend'. This is a situation when the size of the working age population is larger than its number of dependents.
Pakistan has a large number of working-age people who can contribute to increased income, more savings, higher productivity and faster economic growth. The share of population within 15- 24 years is close to 21.31% while the median age of people is little over 23.4 years. This gives Pakistan a competitive edge among other countries in the world which are aging fast. It is now widely discussed that economic slowdown in many advanced countries is partly attributable to higher share of aging population.
However, harnessing the full potential of this young population is challenging. As per the World Bank (WB) employment data the average value for Pakistan during the period from 1991 to 2016 was 6.01 percent with a minimum of 4.26 percent in 1994 and a maximum of 8.3 percent in 2003. The Global Competitiveness Report 2016-2017 has placed Pakistan's health and primary education at 128 among 138 countries and score was recorded 4.0. Similarly, higher education and training is ranked at 123 with the score of 2.9.
Further, the WB data for youth unemployment, ages 15-24 for Pakistan indicates 10.39 percent as an average value for Pakistan during 1991 to 2016 with a minimum of 7.18 percent in 1993 and a maximum of 14.39 percent in 2001. Youth unemployment measures the percent of 15-24 year olds who are part of the labour force but are unemployed. It also refers to the share of the labour force ages 15-24 without work but available for and are seeking employment.
This is of course a global phenomenon where labour force participation of young population has declined in developing countries and youth inactivity rates increased. But it is an alarming finding indeed. For materializing the demographic dividend, all working age population has to be accommodated into the workforce. This requires creation of enough jobs in the economy. Major boost has to come from the private sector through higher investment. But from the supply end of the work force, these youths have to be educated and trained to cater to the demand of the job market.
Unfortunately, employability of our young workforce is low. They lack education and training. However, this is not only about getting education. As observed randomly, a lot of university graduates too can neither write nor speak a single sentence correctly in English. So quality of education and appropriate skills are fundamental requirements for increased opportunity for youth.
Investments in human capital are thus critically important to take advantage of the large young population. Sector specific skills and knowledge are needed for developing their capability, improving productivity and building entrepreneurship. This can fulfill the needs and aspirations of our young and escalating population. This will also let our children grow as change makers and emerging power to transform the future of the country.